25 Prompts
by theramenfreak
Summary: A collection of multiple drabbles and flash-fiction. Mainly Tsuna-centric, but there are some other P.O.V's thrown in there as well. Rated T for a number of reasons. Swearing, gore, violence and Bel's thoughts included.
1. Power

**A/N: **Here is where the actual prompts begin (They will be mostly about Tsuna, but a few other characters will be included!) and thanks to xXxShiniXKazexXx for inspiring a few Dark Tsuna drabbles!

Enjoy and Review :)

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><p>They had screwed up before during training - it was a well known fact - but now it was different.<p>

When they slipped up and accidentally forgot their partners limits, maybe a cut or sprained wrist would ensue. Now, however, when they trained, they did so with their lives on the line.

No one was as vigilant as Tsuna, though. He was well aware that his power would be enough to envelop them all in a single move gone wrong, or a simple slip of his hand. He constantly limited his power as not to frighten them, but sometimes he had to vent.

When the guardians were off on a mission, or even sometimes when they were sleeping, he would remain in the vast, plain training room. He'd raise his arms in preparation and let loose a torrent of violent flames. They would tear through the empty space and engulf all in their path. Afterward, he would be left standing in the midst of a plane of destruction, out of breath and scared. He had become frightened of his own powers.

It had been during the fury of one of these sessions that Gokudera had stumbled upon his boss' training program. He had stood watching from the doorway in awe. _'Has Juudaime always been this powerful?'_ he wondered, _'he's simply been playing with us for all this time...' _

The furious hurricane of yellow flame finally halted and large pieces of debris fell from the walls and roof. Finally, the lone figure was visible, standing in the middle of the room. Gokudera opened his mouth to shout a greeting to his boss, however something stopped him.

Tsuna's shoulders were shaking. Gokudera could barely make out the tiny trembles, but sure enough, something was wrong with him. He took a step forward cautiously and had opened his mouth once more when he heard the sob.

It was barely audible and Gokudera first thought he'd imagined it, but soon after, another one followed. Tsuna sank to his knees and raised a glove-clad fist to his eyes. He wiped the tears from his eyes as the flame on his forehead slowly burnt out. They remained like that - Tsuna struggling to bring his tears under control and Gokudera torn between his desire to help or to give his boss space - for longer than he cared to remember. The string of raw tears began to dwindle and finally Tsuna sat in silence, staring at his own hands, in a trance.

Gokudera watched in silence, before slowly turning around and quietly retiring to his room. Tsuna needed to be alone, even if he was in pain.


	2. Mistakes

"...I...I killed him?"

Tsuna stared at his hands in shock. They were smeared with blood and dirt. The white of his mittens was now indistinguishable. In desperation, he clawed at them and threw them to the ground.

"Juu...Juudiame?"

Gokudera placed a hand on his boss' shoulder in an attempt to calm him down. He felt the small arm trembling for a second before Tsuna shook him off. He brushed his hand away and started running for the door. He had to get away from everything - the stench of death filled his nose as his feet stumbled over the earth.

His guardians watched him go in silence.

Finally, Gokudera spoke up, "We all make mistakes..."

Ryohei looked at him dubiously and Mukuro chuckled quietly in the background. Yamamoto was still staring at the former enemy boss on the ground when Hibari addressed everyone's thoughts.

"Mistakes, yes - but that was no accident, Herbivore"

Gokudera turned to him with a fist raised, "What are you saying?"

"Did you not see Sawada's face when he struck the killing blow? I hardly think it was unintentional. Our boss has become-"

"SHUT UP!"

Hibari halted with surprise. He'd never heard Gokudera - or any other herbivore for that matter - take such a tone with him.

"My - no, _our _boss is not a killer! He would never do such a thing on purpose!" When no one responded, Gokudera's anger increased, "What is wrong with you people? You call yourself the Juudaime's guardians? How can you-"

"Gokudera..." Yamamoto's voice was quiet but it cut straight through Gokudera's rage, "Gokudera, I think...I think we're all just a little shocked. None of us expected Tsuna to...to..."

Gokudera lowered his head, "Yeah, I know"

"None of us are turning against him, Gokudera. We just...need time. So does he," Ryohei's voice was heavy.

Gokudera nodded slowly before reaching for the gloves that Tsuna had dropped and proceeding out the back door of the warehouse. Hibari had disappeared before anyone had time to discuss his opinions further and Mukuro left with a cheery 'later'.

Yamamoto was still standing silently next to the ravaged body. Ryohei joined him by his side wearily and spoke quietly, "The boss is changing, huh"

"Yeah, no kidding"

Ryohei clapped him on the shoulder before making his way out the door after Gokudera.

Yamamoto let a few more minutes pass by before moving. What was this feeling? It wasn't sadness...or fear...or anything. He had just seen his boss - his _friend_ - burn the flesh of another human being to cinders: so why wasn't he afraid?

_Everything_ was changing.


	3. Fading Away

"_Tsuna!"_

"_Ahh! Reborn! Wh-What is it?"_

"_Why do we fall?"_

"_Wh-What?"_

"_I asked: Why do we fall?"_

"_...I...I don't know..."_

"_..."_

"_What?"_

"_...Nothing"_

"_...b-but what's the answer?"_

"_You'll have to figure it out for yourself"_

"_B-but, Reborn-!"_

"_Shut up! Get back to your homework!"_

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><p>Tsuna's head dropped onto the hard ground. Slowly, his eyelids began sliding closed. The deafening cries of his comrades were fading in his ears and slowly he began to drift away from the world. He was so close - standing on the edge of eternal darkness - praying for the final release into oblivion.<p>

He could see nothing around him but blurry shapes. He looked down at himself from far above. His limp body was lying on the ground with his friends scattered around. There was Lambo, unconscious next to Ryohei's limp form; Hibari kneeling - glaring up at the enemy - with a broken tonfa in each hand; Mukuro bloodied and beaten, half a trident cast out of reach; Yamamoto clutching his sword as he nursed a mangled leg; and finally Gokudera. He was crouching at Tsuna's side with tears in his eyes as he checked for a heartbeat.

All the while, the watching, hungry eyes alive with bloodlust looked on with disdain at the Vongola X generation.

Tsuna felt a wave of numbness spread throughout his mind and shuddered. What was this impassiveness? Shouldn't he have found it within himself to fight back already? Why did he feel unmoved - uncaring almost - that his familiga was about to be annihilated?

The outside world began rushing around his head - speeding so fast that he could make out nothing but quick flashes of color or sound.

As sudden as it had begun, the movement stopped. Now he was truly alone.

"_...wish Tsu-kun had told me where he was running off too..."_ A quiet voice echoed through is mind. It sounded familiar. Had he heard it in a dream?

"_...Juudaime is powerfull! We will never understand..."_

"_...has what it takes. Tsuna might be able to pull this operation off. Of course he'll need training and..."_

"_...well you're my friends! Of course I'd help you out if you were in trouble..."_

Were these...real conversations? Had they really taken place? In another life? Who were these faces that spoke of someone so reverently. They had complete faith in them? Were they fools?

"_...Tsuna! Help! Somebody? Anyone?..."_ That sounded like a girls voice? Did it belong to her? The one with the orange hair? Why did she seem so familiar? Was he going crazy?"

"_..do your best, Tsuna! Kyoko and I will always support..."_ Kyoko? Was that her name?

"_...I never really thought about it that way...I suppose I fight because I want to laugh with you all again sometime..." _Those words...they sounded so familiar...but...he just couldn't remember... _"...you were in danger, Juudaime...as a right-hand man to...protect you...costs me my life..."_

"_...tournament could wait, Tsuna! Once you called...more important...just some silly game..." _

"_...you haven't the right to die, herbivore...allow my prey to escape somewhere I do not wish to follow just yet..."_

"_I just...wanted to protect everyone. That's all I ever wanted..."_ It was his voice - his face - it was Tsuna speaking...but why did he feel so different now?

"_**Tsuna!" **_

The name cut through the confusing jumble of voices and commanded immediate silence.

Why was this memory clearer than the rest?

"_**Ahh! Reborn! Wh-What is it?"**_

That was him responding...but who was this 'Reborn?'

"_**Why do we fall?" **_

What a silly question to ask someone. No one wanted to fall. It just happened. If they didn't, no one would ever learn resilience.

"_**Wh-What?"**_

'I'm quite a stutterer, aren't I?' Tsuna thought with amusement. Then again I've always been no good...useless...stupid...

"_**I asked: Why do we fall?"**_

'I couldn't even answer a simple question...what a waste of a life...'

"_**I...I don't know..."**_

"_**..."**_

"_**What?" **_

"_**...Nothing"**_

'Ahh, Reborn. He was always so mysterious...' Tsuna thought...then- 'Wait...Reborn! The brat of a home tutor! How could he have possible forgotten Reborn?'

"_**...b-but what's the answer?"**_

"_...that's right! Juudaime! I will fight beside you forever! You can count on me..."_

"_...I won't let any more of my friends get hurt!..."_

"_...I will not allow anyone to disturb the peace and live..."_

"_...I will fight with you! Tsuna!"_

"_Juudaime!"_

"_Sawada...Tsunayoshi"_

"_**You'll have to figure it out for yourself"**_

Yes, he had figured it out, now...

Gokudera jumped. Tsuna's heart had just kick-started back into life. The silver haired man looked in wonder up at Tsuna's golden eyes. They had only just re-opened and were filled with an emotion he had never seen his boss wear before.

"Gokudera..."

"Ahh...yes...Juudaime?"

"Stay back..."

"But I-!"

"I can handle this"

"...okay"

Tsuna could feel the eyes of his guardians on him - watching him intently as he catapulted himself into the air after the looming threat. The enemy boss' eyes flashed with apprehension at first, then reminded himself that his new opponent was simply a boy. The flames looked out of place atop the forehead of someone so young and innocent.

"Brat, what do you think-"

"Let me ask you something"

Something about his voice stopped him - This Sawada Tsunayoshi...the Tenth Vongola...what was he?

The boss allowed a smirk to flash across his face in fake confidence and he answered in a condescending tone "Go ahead, boy"

Tsuna's expression did not change from that of calm determination as he asked the question that had bugged him for so long.

"Can you tell me...why do we fall?"

The enemy boss was startled for a moment, then let loose a terribly wild peal of laughter. He wiped the tears from his eyes as he regained his composure and leveled a superior stare at Tsuna.

"Brat...when you are as great and powerful as me, you do not fall. If you do though, it is because you are too weak to handle your own power"

Tsuna's expression betrayed a flicker of disappointment. The enemy would have claimed it was fear of his omnipotent power, however he was wrong. At his response, Tsuna had finally decided that all hope for this man had finally been lost. As the tenth boss of the Vongola, it was his job to eradicate the threat.

"Operation...X"

Tsuna slowly raised a hand behind him and let the soft, yellow flames run their course. The meter began rising in his contacts and his other hand began trembling with suppressed power.

"...you're wrong, you know," Tsuna addressed his opponent. The man who had been watching Tsuna with a mixture of apprehension and contempt was startled by his voice.

"Wrong about what?"

"We fall, not because we are weak...but because we do not have anyone to stop us from crashing"

"What are you-"

"If we do not fall, we can never realize how much we have to loose. If that doesn't happen...how can we find the power needed to save everything?"

"Ready, boss," the electronic voice buzzed in Tsuna's earpiece. The gauge had finally leveled into a straight line.

He could feel his hand aching to release the stored pressure within. With a flicker of regret, Tsuna extended his hand towards the 'omnipotent' enemy leader and let loose his torrential flames. The heat from them singed his sleeves and hair and he felt his face growing hot. He closed his eyes and a single scream slowly shrank into silence...

"If we do not fall...we will never be given the opportunity to rise once more...and become greater than ever..."


	4. Choose

He could hear the cheering of the raucous crowd siting in anticipation outside. His stomach was churning at the thought of striding out there with his held high. A grin stole over his face as he remembered the trials he had overcome just to get here. The long afternoon and morning sessions. Before and after school every day he would run, throw and train without break for hours on end.

He sat down on the locker-room bench and put his hands on the back of his neck, then rested his elbows on his knees. A strange feeling flashed through is stomach and he felt a rush of uneasiness. His eyebrows drew together for an instant before relaxing back into a smile. He couldn't remain unhappy on the day of the big game. Finally, the grueling days of practice would pay off...

"5 minutes until game start, Takeshi" His coach popped his head in the doorway, "You ready?"

"O-Of course! I've been waiting so long!" Yamamoto stuttered. This fluttering feeling in his stomach was increasing with each minute. His coach grinned at him and winked, "Break a leg, out there, Takeshi"

Yamamoto could only smile in response.

Then his ringtone went off.

'_That's odd,'_ he thought in surprise, _'I swear I turned off my mobile so I could focus...'_

He stuck his hand into his large duffle bag and searched for the noisy alarm. Finally, he felt the vibrating gadget against his fingers. He pulled the phone free and frowned, _'I _know_ I turned it off...'_

Then he saw the model. It was the Vongola emergency phone Gokudera had thrust into his hands with a disgruntled expression and told him, "Juudaime insists we have a different phone for Mafia matters. Don't ever turn it off"

The blood drained from Yamamoto's face as the worried feeling crept back into his stomach. With hesitation, he clicked the 'answer' button.

"He-"

"YAMAMOTO!"

This was bad - Yamamoto had never heard Gokudera call him by his actual name before. Only baseball freak, idiot, stupid...etc.

"Gokudera? What's wr-"

"Get on the next plane to Italy! Now! It's the Tenth...he's...he's in trouble...serious trouble!"

"Wh-What do you mean, Gokudera?" So this is why he was feeling so odd. Intuition?

"Juudaime is in hospital! He's crashing..."

Yamamoto gripped the plastic phone so tightly his knuckles turned white. His eyes widened in shock, "What happened?"

"There was an attack on the Vongola head quarters! We were loosing, but Tsuna...stepped in. You know how he is. He saved us all but took some heavy damage...I was...useless...Yamamoto, I think he's gonna...He-He's giving up...I tried my best, but..."

Yamamoto squeezed his eyes shut and prayed for Gokudera to be misinformed. He knew that the Storm Guardian was telling the truth, though. He would never make light of the boss in trouble. Such terrible timing, though! The finals! The very event that he had been training for so long. His dream...

"Please...Takeshi?"

Yamamoto snapped his eyes open.

"Send the plane over"


	5. Meant No Harm

"Go-Gokudera...what...what have you done?"

Tsuna stared in shock down at the charred remains of a body lying at his right-hand-man's feet. The corpse was mangled beyond recognition, however Tsuna swore he could see half of a middle school crest on a burt piece of material. Above it, the silver-haired man stood with grim resolve etched into every crease on his face.

"It was necessary, Juudaime," the practical tone of Gokudera's voice sent cold shivers down Tsuna's spine. Who was this person? His face looked familiar but those eyes...they had changed.

"Necessary?" Tsuna echoed in a hollow voice.

"It was an assassin sent from an enemy family. He had been trailing you for a few days and waiting until you were alone to attack. I caught on early and-"

'It'- Gokudera had just referred to another human being as an 'it'. Was his Storm Guardian really so far gone?

"Murdered him?"

Gokudera snorted in contempt, "I hardly think it was murder, Juudaime"

"No, you're right. By the look of it, I'd say it was a slaughter" Tsuna felt his lunch churning in his stomach. The urge to throw up was steadily becoming harder to ignore as he gazed down at the twisted body, however he had become entranced. For some reason he could not pull his eyes away from Gokudera's victim.

"I disposed of a rat, sent to kill you"

Tsuna's eyes were beginning to sting and a lump was rising in his throat, "How...how could you just..."

"Juudaime?"

"That was a human life, Gokudera! What gave you the right to-"

"It was threatening your safety! I don't understand why this is becoming such a big deal. I was simply protecting-"

"Who?"

Gokudera stopped in surprise at Tsuna's interruption. He studied his boss' face in detail. There was something off about it. Why were his eyes were moist? Because of the loss of a single life? Why were his shoulders quivering. He looked almost...scared...

"What do you mean, Juudaime?"

"That! Right there! You call me '_Juudaime_'. Is that who you were protecting? Or...or were you looking out for _me_? For your friend, _Tsuna_? ...Or were you doing it for yourself?"

"I don't...don't understand. What are saying?"

"I'm asking you if you feel any regrets about killing another human being?"

"Not one like him! I could- would kill thousands like him if your life was in danger, Juudaime!"

Tsuna stared at him as an icy fist closed over his chest. His breathing halted after those words. This wasn't the Gokudera he knew anymore. Tsuna's head slowly lowered and his next words were barely audible.

"Gokudera...who am I to you?"

"What are you talking about, Juudaime?"

"If I asked you to...to leave the Vongola family...would you do it?"

Gokudera stepped back from Tsuna, "Wh-what are you saying!"

"Would you leave the Vongola family if you were asked by your friend, Tsuna?"

"N-no! Of course not! I have to protect you!"

"Please Gokudera?"

"I-I can't..."

"Then what if I ordered you to?"

Tsuna raised his head to stare at Gokudera. He hated himself, then. He knew that this would hurt him almost much as much as he was hurting himself, but he needed to know...

"A-are you ordering me to?"

"I am"

"Then...I, Gokudera Hayato, relieve myself of the title, Tenth Guardian of-"

"You'd follow my orders..." Tsuna interrupted with an unreadable expression on his face, "Even though this is the thing you treasure most in the world?"

"Of course!"

"But my pleading as your friend was not enough?"

"What are you getting at, Juudaime?"

"That. '_Juudaime_'. You respect him and his wishes unconditionally...but that's not me. It was for his sake that you have lied, stolen, tortured...and murdered. Everything was for the sake of the Tenth Generation"

"Yes, of course"

"...Then gather the guardians and all affiliated mafia families. And book me a plane flight, Gokudera. I'm going to Italy"

"Why?"

"...I'm resigning as the Tenth Boss of the Vongola"


	6. Destiny

The stench of blood filled Tsuna's nose. It engulfed his senses and he choked on the sickly sweet scent. Around him, bodies lay strewn like children's dolls. His stomach churned at the sight and he fought the urge to throw up, however something inside of him was slowly awakening. The blood on his hands and face seemed to sear his flesh and he felt goos-bumps rise on his arms.

An unfamiliar feeling crept up into throat and bubbled out as a giggle. Was he going mad? It rose again and once more the maniacal laughter split the deathly silence. His eyes widened at his own reaction. What the hell was wrong with him? Then the euphoria overcame him once more and he forgot all reservations.

This is what he had been born to do. To feel singed flesh under his hands - to steal the life from frightened eyes and revel in the dying screams that he caused. To him, they were masterfully created symphonies. His victims plea's would infect his ears, however they would never manage to stir his heart.

Why had he fought so hard against the idea of becoming part of the mafia? He wanted - no - _needed_ more. Slowly, a bloodthirsty grin stole over his expression. Well if Reborn wanted him to fulfill his 'duty' to the Vongola, then perhaps he would comply. After all, as the child had stated so many times before - it was his destiny.


	7. By My Side

"Jyuudaime?"

There was no answer when Gokudera knocked on his boss' door. He had just returned from a mission away from the Vongola mansion and he had information about a family willing to ally with the Vongola. He had intended to report to Tsuna immediately, however there was one problem - Tsuna wasn't answering.

"Jyuu-?" Gokudera stopped when he tried to turn the handle. It was locked. Tsuna never locked the door to his office. He felt panic rising in his throat but he fought to remain calm - maybe he was just over reacting. The door might have swung shut and accidentally locked? If that was the case then Tsuna might just not have realized.

"Jyuudaime! Can you please open the door? I think it's accidentally locked..."

There was still no answer.

The panic was getting harder to control. Gokudera began pushing against the door in an attempt to move it however it did not budge. He stepped back and took a deep breath, analyzing the situation. Finally, he decided upon the most logical course of action. Gokudera took another few steps back until he was pressed against the opposite wall and curled his hands into a fist.

"Aaaaaarrrrrhhhhh!" The door slammed open as his shoulder hit the wood with all of his power behind it. He tripped a little on entry and sprawled to the floor. Settling dust swirled around him as he took a few more deep breaths. His shoulder hurt a little, but he just ignored it and sat up slowly.

A strange smell was present in the room. It seemed familiar, however not in a good way. It tugged at buried memories and Gokudera felt the annoying feeling that he was forgetting something. His eyes were drawn to the desk which he had sat in front of so many times before and discussed everything from plans for future alliances to fights and unforgettable moments from the past. They continued up, past the hardwood surface and landed on the empty, luxurious desk chair where Tsuna usually sat. Where is the hell was he? The window behind the desk was broken. Smashed to pieces. He saw glimmering shards of glass lying on the floor around Tsuna's desk and chair. Then his peripheral vision noticed a strange looking, growing stain on the ground. It was dark, almost black and it was slowly but surely spreading across the carpet, eating it's way through the material. Gokudera stared at the oddity for a minute before something clicked. It was blood. A lot of it by the look of it...the broken window...the blood...

"Jyuudaime!" Gokudera stumbled to the side of the desk and took a deep breath before hesitantly peering around the corner. What he saw frightened him more than any enemy before.

Gokudera's boss lay broken on the blood stained carpet, his chest barely moving as he attempted to breath.

He fell to his knees beside Tsuna and frantically began searching his body for a knife; a bullet hole - anything that could be the cause of all that blood. All the while angry tears pricked at the edge of his eyes.

"Jyuudaime...don't...don't die, yet! Please hold on..."

Finally, he managed to locate the tiny bullet hole an inch or two above Tsuna's heart. He tore a strip of material from the bottom of his shirt and pressed it into the wound. The freely flowing blood began to slow down, hen his eyes caught sight of a different source of blood. Another bullet hole was bored into Tsuna's stomach. Gokudera cursed and took off his jacket. He tore another strip of material, however his hands were shaking so badly it took him a few moments to shred the expensive garment.

Finally, he had wrapped what used to be a jacket sleeve tightly around Tsuna's midriff, stanching the flow of blood for a little while. As he pulled the last knot a little tighter, he heard a weak groan come from his boss. Tsuna's eyelids fluttered a little as he fought to keep conscious. Gokudera immediately raised his boss' head and shoulders up and let him rest on one of him arms.

"Jyuudaime! Jyuudaime, can you hear me?"

Tsuna's mouth moved however no words came out. He swallowed then tried again, "I...I'm sorry...Gokudera"

"Wh-what?"

"I'm sorry, I...I let my guard down and they..." Tsuna was interrupted by a violet bout of coughing. He raised a pale, clammy hand to his mouth, and when he removed it a fresh layer of blood coated his palm. It ran down his wrist and he let his arm fall back to the ground. His head tilted forward dangerously as his eyes threatened to close once more, but Tsuna forced them open.

"We need to get medical attention immediately! I'll be right-"

"No"

Gokudera stopped. He had just been about to prop Tsuna up on the side of the desk when he felt Tsuna's hand curl into a fist around the material left on his sleeve.

"Wh-what is it?"

"Don't...It's too late. I just...don't want to be...alone when I...when..."

Tsuna's eyes were already sliding shut as he spoke. Gokudera stared in shock once he heard Tsuna's last request- no! He refused to believe him. Jyuudaime couldn't die! Not like this!

"YAMAMOTO! REBORN! ANYONE! HELP!"

Gokudera screamed into the empty hallway. He knew that there was no one around to help Tsuna but he had to try...he had to...do _something_; anything!

He was yelling even after the heart in his arms had slowed to a complete stop. Even when he could no longer hear Tsuna's desperate breaths. Even when he knew without a doubt that his boss had just died in his arms, Gokudera still begged for help.


	8. Heartfelt

Tsuna stood under a dim streetlight, watching it flicker incessantly. Raindrops pelted down and seemed to sting his already soaking skin. His eyes were burning with tears but he kept his head angled up - he would not cry. The moon and stars were completely hidden by the clouds in the sky. They seemed to press down on the air around him and it felt like the layer of fog was slowly caging him where he stood.

The last few weeks has been a mess of lies, secrets and stressful moments. The most recent fight had seen Tsuna and his guardians defending their rights as the tenth Vongola generation against violent would-be-successors. Lambo and Ryohei were both still in hospital and Gokudera had his arm in a sling. Chrome had barely escaped with her life, even after Mukuro intervened. Yamamoto had lost conciousness halfway into the fight after a particularly nasty blow to the head and Hibari had disappeared once the enemies had been defeated, apparently unscathed, however Tsuna could've sworn he had saw him limping.

But Tsuna? Tsuna had no injuries. None at all besides a small cut on his shoulder. Why? Because he couldn't fulfill a single promise. He had watched in horror as his friends fells one by one all around him. They had leapt in front of attacks mean for him and defended him with their bodies. All the while he had heard the echoes of his empty words _'I will protect my friends! I won't let anyone else get hurt!'. _It seemed almost comical to him, now. His assurances to Reborn, his guardians...himself. He had thought he was able to look after his friends but it seemed he just couldn't. Now they suffered through injuries meant for him.

"Tsuna? Is that you?"

That voice...He tilted his head to the side. Sure enough, the familiar face was smiling at him from under an umbrella.

"Oh...It's you, Kyoko..."

Her smile faltered when she finally acknowledged where he was, "Tsuna, what are you doing? You'll catch a cold standing out here in the rain!" She held out her hand to him and gestured that he join her under the umbrella. Tsuna looked at her for another moment before he asked in a flat voice, "How is your brother?"

Kyoko was taken aback and withdrew her hand slowly, "I...I thought you knew..." Tsuna's stare intensified and he felt anxiousness turn in the pit of his stomach. However, he remained silent and waited for her to continue, "He...he took a turn for the worse and...now the doctors aren't sure if...if he'll..."

Kyoko looked close to tears by the time she finished and Tsuna felt guilt add to the ball of frustration he felt. It would be his fault if Kyoko cried. If he had realised Ryohei's intentions before he had carried them out, Tsuna would be in his place and Ryohei would be at home right now, laughing with Kyoko and enjoying spending time with his only sister. He turned his head back to stare at the murky sky again.

"...I see," Tsuna said quietly, "No. No one told me that"

"Oh, well I assumed you'd know...because of the whole...you know..._mafia_ thing..."

"Yeah. It seems everyone does"

"Sorry?"

Tsuna looked at her and noticed her worried expression. He forced a half-convincing smile on his face, "Nothing, Kyoko. Don't worry about it. It's late. You...you should get home before your parents start worrying."

He was sure that her expression cleared a little, but he couldn't keep up the facade for long.

"Are you sure, Tsuna? What about you?"

"I'll be fine"

'_This smile is about to break...'_

"Maybe I should walk you-"

"Kyoko. I'll be fine. Besides, my house is in the opposite direction to yours. That would be silly"

'_I'm not planning to go home..._'

She still looked concerned and opened her mouth to say something more, but Tsuna turned his back on her, waving as he went and calling, "I'll see you tomorrow at school"

He waited a few moments before turning to see if she had left or not. When he did sneak a glance back, he saw he standing with her back to him, shaking. Immediately, he forgot to act calm and dashed over to her side.

"Kyoko? What's-"

Was she hurt? Scared? Maybe there was someone...

"Don't act like this, Tsuna!"

Tsuna pulled back, stunned. He'd never hear Kyoko raise her voice before. Then he noticed the tears streaming down her face. '_Oh..._'

"Act like what, Kyoko?" He asked, forcing the smile back on his face.

"Like...like _that_! You think I don't know that something's wrong!" Tsuna's expression melted into surprise. Had Kyoko really noticed? "How long do you think my brother has been pretending everything was fine? I know that expression. It's the one he uses when he's really in pain. He thinks I don't realize but it's actually him who doesn't understand. When you're hurting it affects everyone close to you. It cause them pain too, but when you try to hide it and suffer on your own - that's even worse!"

"Kyoko, I didn't think-"

"No, you didn't think. You didn't think I'd understand because I'm not part of you're '_guardians_' or the _'Vongola_' or whatever. I want to _help_, Tsuna. Please let me..."

It was silent for a moment, aside from the sound of falling rain. Finally, Tsuna bowed his head and stepped back from her.

"I'm sorry"

"No, it's fine...I understand why you didn't realize-"

"No, Kyoko, I mean...I'm sorry I can't. If you knew what...what I'm feeling, I don't..."

Kyoko stared at him with a blank look on her face, as she scrutinized him, then said quietly, "Is that so..."

"Yes"

"Well I guess you're right. It's late...I better be getting home"

"No, wait, Kyoko!"

"It's okay, Tsuna, I wouldn't want to keep you from your important mafia business"

"Kyoko, don't-"

"Well, bye then..."

"..."

"_I'm scared!_"

Kyoko paused with her back to Tsuna. She didn't say anything and he took this as a sign to continue.

"I'm scared because everyone is relying on me and I don't think I can live up to their expectations. They ignore my wishes and instead put their lives on the line for me every time we fight. Did Ryohei tell you how he got injured? The truth about it?"

Kyoko had turned and was watching him with wide eyes. Tsuna suddenly felt self-conscious, but he kept talking, anyway, since it was too late to stop there.

"Ryohei is lying in hospital because he jumped in front of an attack that was aimed at me. I was fighting someone else and didn't notice it until it had connected with him, but now...now I wish _he _hadn't noticed it either. I just wish...I wish that none of this had...ever happened. That the Vongola; Reborn; the guardians...everything! I just wish it was all a really scary nightmare that I'll wake up from when I pinch myself...but...every time I try to wake up I...I'm just...still..."

Tsuna wasn't sure if it was raindrops or tears spilling down his face, but he didn't care, now. All that mattered was that Kyoko understood that he could never live a normal life now. He could never go back to school without being on constant alert for enemy assassins or competing families. He'd never have the life he'd always wanted.

"Tsuna...I..."

"Never mind. It's fine - I'm fine. Just...forget this ever happened, alright?"

"I can't"

"What?"

"I can't forget what you just said. Just like how I can never stop worrying about you. When you disappear from weeks of school at a time and return in a cast and have bandages everywhere. I can't help but feel anxious when I just _know _you're off somewhere incredibly dangerous...but it's alright. It's alright, because I know you'll come back. You always come back. And you get better. Though, the thing that always amazes me...is that you go again. I've seen the world that you're part of and I never want to again. The very fact that you can face it and remain as...happy...and sweet...and just...so optimistic - it surprises me every time. I couldn't do that"

"Kyoko..."

"Come on. I'll walk you home," Kyoko smiled brilliantly at Tsuna as she took hold of his hand and pulled him under the umbrella. The shade was a little redundant since he was already soaking wet, but her hand felt nice in his and he couldn't help but smile as they walked.


	9. Flight

The heavy atmosphere lay thick, like a blanket. The intensity was almost tangible. The stand off was beginning to fray Tsuna's nerves as he felt a bead of sweat roll down the back of his neck. Behind him he felt Gokudera's back facing the circle of enemies - holding a gun like a lifeline. His backpack dug uncomfortably into his spine and he ached to tell Gokudera to hurry, but he new he couldn't rush things. It was vital that plans were followed impeccably. There was absolutely no room for mistake.

Suddenly, the plane made a jerking movement and the group of hitmen surrounding them were jolted for a millisecond. Tsuna needed no more than that millisecond. With lightning-fast movements, his hand shot to his mouth and two small pills slid down his throat. Before one of the unlucky hitmen knew what was happening, he took a knee to the jaw and watched, dazed as Tsuna spun in mid air and kicked him directly on the forehead. He hit the floor before anyone could so much as flinch.

Gokudera had also made his move while Tsuna took down one of the enemies. His eyes had been roaming over the group circling them while they had bought time, and they had returned a few times to the largest member of the group. He was quiet, calm and collected. Obviously confident, but not foolish. Experienced but not cocky. Strong. Gokudera grinned. He had chosen his first target. When he felt the boss shoot from his back, his box weapon flashed open half a second after. A shield made of black bones appeared at his side just as an array of bullets slammed into the transparent wall. He aimed the skull-like gauntlet at the tall man and let loose his flames. The man had seen it coming, apparently, since his face remained unchanged as one of his subordinates jumped in front of the torrential red fire in order to protect Gokudera's opponent. As the man fell wailing to the floor - his jacket, shirt and skin scorched to a crispy dark redish black - his superior sighed in contempt and kicked him out of the way.

"Che. Glad to see such obvious friendships still exist in the mafia," Gokudera commented dryly.

"He was too weak. To be taken down after one blow - trash," His voice was gravelly and deep and Gokudera suddenly got the impression of a walking, talking boulder. Maybe singling him out hadn't been such a great idea. Hopefully the Tenth was doing better than him...

He was right, actually. Tsuna's side of the circle were piled in a heap on the floor next to the plane's right-emergency exit. The boss, himself, stood inspecting a finger bent at an odd angle, '_How didn't I notice this happen? Didn't it hurt?'_ he wondered. Then he noticed two hitmen circling around Gokudera's unprotected back.

'_Ha. As if I'd let you,' _he thought in disgust. Tsuna raised his arms behind him and let his sky flames shoot him forward towards the offenders. Just before he collided with the first one, he swung his hands in a diagonal upwards streak and stuck his leg out. He swept his feet out from under the hitman then rose into the air. He stuck his left elbow out and shoot down, hitting the poor guy directly in the rib cage. He heard his breathing halt for a minute before he took an unsteady gasp, but Tsuna was too preoccupied to check if his opponent was still alive. The second man had noticed Tsuna and attempted to aim at the darting figure with a sawed-off shot gun. Tsuna snorted at the man's pitiful attempt to shoot him as a bullet soared a few centimeters wide of his head, catching a few of Tsuna's longer strands of hair in the process. Tsuna accelerated towards him, swung his body around to and delivered a roundhouse kick to the man's unprotected head.

The hitman was closer than Tsuna had estimated, though, and when his foot connected, instead of simply catching the man's cheek, his heel struck his temple. He heard a crunching noise and froze. Blood spurted from the dent in his head and flowed onto Tsuna's shoes. Tsuna shot away from him as quickly as possible, in any direction his hands took him, and ended up crashing directly into the reinforced steel-lined hanger wall. He felt the handle of the plane's other emergency exit catch on his backpack and he shrugged it off in a panic.

He stared with wide eyes at the unmoving hitman lying on the grey floor as blood leaked steadily from his head. Tsuna felt a shiver run up his spine and his blood turned cold. He just...he just killed someone. Not someone evil, or someone who deserved it. Just a man who was following orders...

Then he paused. '_That man...would've killed Gokudera, given the chance. If I hadn't...intervened, Gokudera would be lying there instead. I had to- to choose, and I chose Gokudera. Right...and I would do it again..._' Tsuna was still a little shaken when he heard an incredibly loud bang. It hurt his ears and he immediately covered them with glove-clad hands. He looked over to where Gokudera was fighting his opponent and what he saw definitely wasn't was wanted to.

His storm guardian was barely standing as a moving mountain stood towering over him, holding a smoking gun. Around him, a mess of black bones lay shattered. Gokudera was clutching his bleeding arm as it dangled uselessly by his side. Tsuna raised his hands to join his right hand man to finished off the monster of a man, when suddenly, the view of a bloodied man laying dead on the floor in front him flashed in front of his eyes. He caught his breath and felt the hard skull crack under his foot again. He closed his eyes for a second then snapped them opened and yelled to Gokudera "Operation B!"

The storm guardian gave no inclination that he had heard his boss, but Tsuna knew he had, because of the next bomb he threw. Gokudera reached inside his jacket pocket and withdrew a stick of dynamite. He grinned at the large man and lit his ring flame. Slowly he fed the string through the red fire until it caught, then threw it directly behind him - at Tsuna. Tsuna caught the dynamite in mid air, shoved it into the nearest bag rack and flew as fast as he possibly could towards Gokudera.

As his hands slid under his guardians arms, he heard a loud explosion coming from the stick of dynamite he had just set. The sudden exposure to the atmosphere took the inhabitants of the cabin by surprise. The sudden escape of air immediately became apparent as the hitman gasped and fell to one knee. Seat belts and unsecured items spiraled wildly around the small space as the air made a mad dash out the small hole in the roof of the plane. Tsuna yelled over the rush of wind, "Is it ready?"

Gokudera spat a wad of blood at the walking rock before answering, "full to the brim. I'd give us...15.2 seconds 'till they're splatter-art"

Tsuna grimaced, behind Gokudera's unaware head. The image of his victim flared to life in the front of his mind again but he shook it off. He had other things to worry about, "Then we'd better be off"

The gap made from the dynamite was barely large enough for Tsuna and Gokudera to fit through, and Gokudera's pack snagged on a jagged edge of metal. He swore loudly and shrugged it off immediately. Tsuna hovered just above the aircraft, still clutching Gokudera's arms, however he was now being dragged down, along with the slowly declining plane. Gokudera struggled free as an incessant beeping halted. He threw himself into mid air no more than a second after a loud explosion was heard from the cockpit. In a matter of nanoseconds, roughly twenty more bombs went off, sending violent, unstoppable shock waves rippling through the air. Tsuna was thrown back up into the air as Gokudera took the brunt of it and shot forward as though shot from a canon. Fire exploded from the windows and windscreen of the plane and it began to fall even faster. The storm guardian felt himself caught up in the spiraling air current and started being sucked down along with the heap of useless metal.

Tsuna saw his right hand man spinning through open air and yelled at him to open the parachute when he remembered the horrible tearing noise that had come from his pack as they escaped. He had no way to land.

'_Oh shit!i_ Tsuna raised his hands behind him and began shooting towards the silver haired man as fast as his flames would allow. The ground seemed to be approaching too quickly. Water streamed from Tsuna's eyes and he felt his hands beginning to shake from the pressure of his fire. The storm guardian seemed to moving just as fast as Tsuna, no matter how much he sped up, though.

Gokudera desperately tried to straighten out and fall in the typical 'star-fish' pose that he had seen sky divers use so many times before, however, maneuvering in mid air is harder in reality than in theory. Finally, after much struggling, Gokudera ending up with his head and shoulders pointing towards the ground. '_If I'm going to die, at least the impact should kill me immediately - none of this waiting around bullshit,'_ he thought sarcastically. Then he caught sight of and orange speck approaching rapidly.

'_Jyuudaime!'_ All thoughts of 'dying quickly' flew out of his mind as soon as he saw the reassuring figure speeding towards him. Tsuna was wearing that expression again. His eyebrows furrowed, eyes narrowed, nose all scrunched up and mouth drawn into a tight line. It was quite familiar. Gokudera had seen him look like this every time Tsuna was beginning to feel the stress of a fight. Maybe Tsuna would reach him before the ground did...

Tsuna felt a spark of hope. Gokudera was only meters away - 100...90...80...70...He increased his flames even more, and halved the distance. Finally, he reached out a hand and caught onto Gokudera's forearm. He felt the storm guardian's fingers curl around Tsuna's arm and he slowly brought his right hand down to halt the sickening fall. Gokudera's weight threw him off for a minute, but his flames were more than enough to support the two.

The pair were silent for a minute or two as they hovered a hundred meters from the hard earth. Tsuna was panting and Gokudera felt as though his heart might burst from the stress. The mood was serious and Gokudera prepared to thank Tsuna for his hard work and apologize that he had become a burden on the tenth. However...Tsuna grinned down at Gokudera.

"Close call, huh?"

"Yeah...but did you expect anything different?"

They were silent again, then Gokudera felt a rush of unexpected laughter bubble up through him. Tsuna stared at him oddly, then he too felt a strange urge to laugh. Soon enough, the two were in stitches by the time Tsuna gently let Gokudera step onto the ground.


	10. Beauty

**A/N: Okay, well I don't usually give warnings, but this one's a little gory/sadistic...just letting you know in case you're like Jasper and can't stomach it :)  
><strong>

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><p>A splatter of blood licked up the Prince's arm as the silver knife entered the man's oh-so-fragile body. The blonde hair was dyed a rough, uneven shade of crimson. Specks of the red substance were sprayed across his grinning expression as the knife was raised and slashed against the dying man's chest. His widening smile caught a few drops of blood giving his teeth a demonic allure.<p>

Belphagor watched with a hungry expression as the foolish heart pumped more and more blood out of the numerous wounds in the man's body. It raced towards it's final beat - killing his victim faster...'_perfect_'

He felt a gory satisfaction creep up his spine and his hairs stood on end as the man screamed in agony. His body shook and writhed in pain as Bel slowly let a silver knife run it's course down the man's limp arm. The razor sharp edge sliced through the flesh without even a hint of pressure. The knife had been sharpened with precise movements until it could cut a piece of hair laid over the blade. Now the Prince could no longer contain his euphoria. He lovingly caressed the maroon edge, feeling a wound open on his finger. The blade was not stained - nothing this lovely could be considered a stain - instead the blood acted as a decoration to the intricately carved metal.

Slowly, the yells began to stop and Bel watched in dismay as his play-thing lost it's voice. He thrust the knife into the man's throat in frustration and licked his lips as more gore splattered onto his face. He lifted his hand and watched as a drop of his own blood leisurely rolled down to his fingertip. It seemed to fall in slow motion before the Prince's eyes. '_Such beauty...should not be restricted to myself alone..._'


	11. Open Your Eyes

Slowly, she reached for his limp hand. It lacked the familiar warmth that she had grown so used to. The feel of it was unnatural. Cold. Alien. Wrong.

In a state of shock she lay down next to his unmoving body. There wasn't a tremor - even a suggestion that the figure was still breathing. His eyes were shut peacefully but his mouth was turned down at the corners. His eyebrows were furrowed like he was trying to figure out the answer to a question.

'_What are you thinking about?_' she wondered as she smoothed the hair away from his face and laid her free hand on his forehead. Oh how she longed to see those brown eyes. To see them fill with life and shine as he spoke._'Would it be so hard to just...open them?'_

They stayed like that for a while - one of her hands wound through his cold fingers and the other gently caressing his unresponsive face. He would never move again and she was contented to wait until death overcame her as well.


	12. Promise

"I-I won't...I won't leave! I want you to come w-with us! Please Takeshi!"

Yamamoto's hard expression soften when he turned to face Haru. Her shaking hands were clenching his loose, rolled up sleeve and she ducked her head in an attempt to hide her tears. Yamamoto stood in shock for a moment before gently placing one of his own hands on hers. His other hand went under her chin and lifted her delicate head up so that he could see her eyes.

"I will, Haru," he spoke with a soft voice meant only for her own ears and despite her uncertainty, she felt compelled to believe him. Then, Yamamoto continued, "I will join you right after I fulfill my duty"

The tears started to run thicker and faster, now and she choked out, "Do you promise?"

Suddenly, she was enveloped in Yamamoto's arms. Haru was too distraught to notice the sudden proximity, however she felt his lips brush across her forehead and felt his breath against her skin as he whispered, "I promise". She felt surrounded by his comforting, familiar scent and she attempted to commit the feel of him holding her to memory forever.

Then he was gone.

She could see his retreating figure darting in and out between enemy figures. A blue flame coated his sword and acted as a beacon amidst the chaos around him. She watched with fearful eyes as the metal doors slowly began closing while Yamamoto stood protectively in front of his only escape route. She held back the urge to yell to him and warn him that soon he would not have enough space to slip between the steel and bit her lip. Yamamoto would come back. He had promised.

When there was less than a meter between the crushing metal and Yamamoto had still made no move to slide back into the room, Haru decided to take action.

"Takeshi! Hurry up!"

She felt panic rise in her throat as he glanced back through the rapidly declining space. The expression on his face stunned her. It was a mix of fear and sadness. His eyes seemed to convey the message perfectly - he wasn't coming back.

"Takeshi!"

Haru screamed. The last thing she saw before the doors slid into their impenetrable state was his lips mouthing '_I'm sorry_'.

She stood in shocked silence for a minute. Then she head a call behind her.

"Yamamoto!"

"What the hell is the baseball freak thinking?"

"Quickly! Open the doors! We have to help-"

"We can't! Once they've been closed...they won't open...ever"

Mindless babble to Haru.

She remained silent, even after the rest of the family had thrown themselves at the door and attacked it with everything they had. After they had finally given up and decided to try another entry point to the room where Yamamoto now battled for the Vongola's protection.

Now all she focused on were those empty words that were all she had to cling to.

"You promised..."

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><p><strong>AN: _I'M NOT DEAD! I SWEAR! Sorry for the inconsistent updates but I'm feeling really unmotivated. Right now I'm trying to decide between two polar opposites - I'm wondering if I should start a multi-chapter KHR fic or take a break from writing for a while...Ah well. Enjoy the story for now._**


	13. Justice

The smell of gasoline filled Tsuna's nose and his eyes began watering at the tang. He finished pouring the last bottle of it in the experimentation room where Lambo had been held and then paused to admire his handwork. The corpses from his attack were piled high in the middle of the room and he had made sure that the boss was on the bottom.

Tsuna bent over to rest his hand on the small pool of gasoline. With only a slight amount of effort, he let his flame come billowing out of his glove and set the chain reaction in motion. Soon, the underground lab was alight with his orange flame. He knew that it would be the safest way to destroy the building. Water or suffocation wouldn't be enough to put out the flames and he knew that the Families would understand its significance. It silently told them that if they stepped out of line as badly as this stupid Family had, then Tsuna would be forced to respond personally…and in the underground, that was considered to be equal to the death sentence.

Slowly, Tsuna began ambling towards the exit, his own flame dancing around his feet without burning him. The orange fire licked up his arms and face. The inferno reflected in his eyes gave him the appearance of the devil incarnate. A sick smile spread over his face as he reached the crimson walls of the warehouse. Justice, no matter how brutal, had been served.

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><p><strong>Oh my! I'm still alive! Shocker! <strong>**So this story/drabble thingy will probably be on semi-hiatus for a while. This prompt is actually a tiiiiiiiny piece of a larger (better) story I'm currently writing (much larger) and I'm planning to focus mainly on that for a while. Sorry for the delaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayed update, but so much to write, so little time...**


	14. Space

The frigid air swept Tsuna's hair around his face and in his eyes as he stood motionless, roughly two-hundred meters above the ground. His toes curled around the edge of the building and once more, he felt the urge – the _need_ – to jump. He wanted to throw himself over the edge and let the wind carry him wherever it wanted. He tried to imagine what it would be like – spiraling through the air with nothing to guide him. He would have no control over his path.

It would be such a new feeling. For so long, he had retained power over everything – he could command anything and bend it to his own will. His position as boss meant the world was simple putty in his hands. His intuition rendered any social situation into child's-play. His flames made sure that he could defy gravity and control his movements even when in mid air. The feeling of powerlessness that the jump offered felt like forbidden fruit.

Tentatively, Tsuna leaned forward with his arms raised in surrender to the hurricane-like rain. His eyes drifted closed and he let a small smile steal across his face. His hair was swept up by the current of air and seemed to float serenely around his face. He could feel the sting of the negative temperature on his exposed forearms and face. The buttons on his dress shirt threatened to pop when the wind infiltrated the spaces between the material and his skin and his tie writhed in the air like a vicious snake.

Tsuna felt his foot inch forward even further. Below him, the sounds of the city nightlife was almost inaudible due to the raging wind in his ears. He could pick out the miniscule figures darting across the street, dressed in suits and combat gear. He knew they had come for him. As he waited, the muffled sounds of bodies crashing up the stairs to the roof could be heard faintly. Tsuna resisted the need to turn when he heard a door slam shut behind him, knowing that Reborn would speak first.

"Baka-Tsuna," the hitman greeted and Tsuna knew he would've tipped his fedora in greeting. The terrifying infant was never one to neglect manners.

"Reborn," he whispered in return.

There was silence, penetrated only by the howling of the city's weather. Once more, Tsuna leaned forward dangerously as the breeze threatened to tip him over the edge. He closed his eyes and didn't fight the feeling. He wished for the wind to decide for him. He wanted the air itself to push him in a direction. For once in his life, Tsuna wanted a decision to be made for him.

"Where are your gloves, Baka-Tsuna?" Reborn asked quietly from behind him. The wind had stolen his words before they could even leave his mouth, but Tsuna knew what he had asked.

"…gone," he murmured into the blank sky. He tilted his head back again and took a deep breath through his nose. He angled his head so that he could spy the tiny outline of Reborn from the corner of his eye. The hitman didn't respond but Tsuna could sense his concern. It was radiating from him like a pulsating light. Reborn's fear for his student's life was as plain to see as day. He smiled sadly at the eternally-one-year-old and closed his eyes when the hitman continued to gaze at him in worry.

"Are you going to jump?" Reborn finally asked. It had taken him a long time to clear the lump in his throat after Tsuna had confirmed his fears, however he had managed to suppress the pricking sensation in his eyes.

"…I…don't know," Tsuna muttered, confusion springing to his expression.

Reborn frowned at the unexpected response. Somehow Tsuna still managed to surprise him. He had thought that his favorite student would have come to a more definite decision, however the uncertainty had been clear in the lidded brown eyes.

The loud sounds of crashing echoes up the cramped stairwell and Reborn spun his head to see the door slam open once more. A stream of black-clad men bolted through the open space, weapons raised. A few of the them leveled their guns at Reborn, however the rest remained focused on the main enemy.

The one that had decimated their previous fighting strength.

The one that had almost single-handedly taken down seventeen rival Families.

The one who's position atop the tallest building in Italy was now nothing more than empty space.


	15. Evidence

Tsuna was late. It wasn't so much the hour that bothered Kyoko, but the way her phone had remained traitorously silent during his absence. Usually when he worked after hours he would call and apologize profusely until she soothed him with empty assurances. Despite her previous promises to him, Kyoko was not sleeping soundly. She had eaten without him and left the rest of the meal in the microwave for when he finally arrived. She had prepared herself for bed and waited on the couch for over an hour before finally sighing and accepting that it would be another lonely night.

With sadness weighing on her mind, Kyoko had slipped into the bed, much too large for only a single body. She had curled around the blankets and tried to will herself to sleep. The only problem was the unnatural stillness surrounding her. It was like the room was pressing in and squeezing the breath from her lungs. She clenched her eyes before sighing and sitting up. Before she could step off the bed, the sound of the front door softly thumping shut had her pulling off the covers and bolting to her feet. When Kyoko finally stumbled to a halt in the kitchen door, her eyes widened at the sight of her husband.

Tsuna was frozen in the middle of the smaller room, clutching the dinner plate laden with food. His other hand was still resting against the microwave door and as they stood, a feint rumbling could be heard coming from his stomach. That wasn't why Kyoko was staring, though. What she was staring at was the state of the man in front of her.

Although he tried to hide it, Tsuna's hands were shaking slightly and his eyes were fighting to stay open. His facial features were drawn into a terse expression and his shoulders were set too stiff for him to have come home from the office. To back up her hypothesis, one of Tsuna's sleeves had a dark, crimson stain splashed across the material. Kyoko had never really taken the time to think very hard about the repercussions of Tsuna taking up the position of a Mafia boss, but as he gently set the plate back down on the kitchen bench with a pained expression, she finally realized what the substance on his sleeve was.

"You weren't doing paperwork," She asked sadly, "Were you?"

When asked the single question he hadn't wanted to hear, Tsuna could only bow his head. How could he lie when she had clearly seen the gore he was displaying so carelessly? The evidence was damning.


	16. I'm Here

There were times when Mukuro wanted to scream in frustration. He observed through Chrome's eyes. He saw what she saw and heard when she heard. He could take control of her body and move about as he saw fit. The simple minded girl was more than willing to recede deep into the far reaches of her own mind whenever Mukuro wished to walk among the free once more. He should be content. Logically, he should feel satisfied. After all, not everyone imprisoned in the highest security Vendice Prison could stroll down the street and order an ice cream. Considering his predicament Mukuro should be happy to have simply retained his sanity for so long in the dark.

However, as Mukuro watched a specific boss lean in slowly with his eyes drifting shut, he wanted nothing more than to be free of the irritating jail cell and lifeless water-filled tank. He could sense Tsunayoshi's lips brushing over his illusion's. He was aware of the hand resting softly on the crook of his neck. He knew that if he wound an arm around the boy's slim waist then Tsunayoshi would squeak slightly and lean into his illusion's chest for yet another kiss…but he couldn't _feel_ it.

He could not tell if the boy's lips were soft. He did not know how gently Tsunayoshi's fingers wound in the illusion of hair. He wouldn't be able to feel the warmth of another body pressed against his. No matter how many illusions he used, Mukuro would never be able to recreate the feel of human flesh under his touch.

Angered by his own mind's limitations, he wanted to scream; to yell in frustration and burst free of the damming restraints. He wanted more than anything to take hold of Tsunayoshi's hand and pull him aside to whisper quietly, '_I'm not really here_'…

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><p>AN – Hahaa! See what I did there ;) Totally flipped it 'round like an epic kid…yeah, so I know I hadn't written any BL until now, but this was just so...fitting. Meh. I'm gonna be keeping the yaoi on the down low throughout the story, though. This was just a once off.


	17. Funeral

Reborn still remembered the gunshots. He remembered what it sounded like when Tsuna died in his arms. He remembered the steadily whitening face and terrified expression of his no-good student when his heart rapidly sped towards its last beat. He remembered the devastated tears of Tsuna's friends when they discovered what he had witnessed.

The second they settled on a time and date for a funeral, Reborn had made plans. He had tracked the murderers down and when the coffin bearers trekked their dejected path down the isle, Reborn made his final stand in a lifeless, gore-soaked room. With nothing but Leon and a tattered suit, Reborn silently removed his worn fedora and held it gently over his heart. He heard the soft footfalls of the second wave of hitmen and when they finally burst into the room with weapons blazing, he met them with a sad smile.

It seemed fitting to die on the day of his student's funeral.


	18. Smile

Byakuran gritted his teeth and his lips curled back into a snarl as he stared at the ceiling.

There was something he'd forgotten; _missed_. There was something wrong.

Wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong

The damn Vongola had smiled. Why did he smile? Normal people didn't smile on their deathbeds…then again; normal people didn't manage to successfully lead an entire Mafia Family at the age of fifteen…but it wasn't successful anymore. Now he was dead and the Family in shambles…but there was something off.

Byakuran rolled onto his side and threw the stifling white sheets off of him. He narrowed his eyes in frustration. That nagging feeling in his head…it wriggled and squirmed his way into his thoughts and now he couldn't sleep. Damn it, that brat was still irritating him from beyond the grave an wouldn't –

_Was he dead?_

Of course he was. Byakuran had shot the bullets himself. He'd seen them pierce the Vongola squarely in the heart and forehead. It had been a professional hit – from a professional assassin.

_He smiled_

**Why did he smile?**

Byakuran had missed something. He never missed anything. His plans were perfect; infallible; flawless; unfailing; what had he forgotten? _Overlooked_?

_Was he dead?_

Byakuran tightened his hand into a fist and felt his fingernails threatening to break the skin on the palm of his hand. He sat abruptly and swung his legs over the side of his large bed. The moonlight was glinting off of the metal plating that lined his White Spell uniform draped over the chair in the far corner of his room. Along the bottom of the jacket, Byakuran's eyes could only just make out the messy blood splatters that stained the pure white. That particular piece of clothing would be unsalvageable, but that did not upset Byakuran in the least. Instead, as he strode over to the uniform and ran the damp material between his fingers, he felt a slight rush of reassurance.

The blood was real. It was real and the Vongola had died. He had died and that was all th –

_He smiled_

With a frustrated roar, Byakuran clenched his fist in the blood soaked coat and swung his hand, releasing it in time to see the weighty jacket splatter against the far wall and then fall innocently to the ground.

Seething, Byakuran rammed a lethal fist into the wall behind him. He could _see_ that bloody mess of a human on the ground and _hear_ the shouts of the brats guardians outside the room, but that damn, damn, damn, damn, damn, damn, damn _**smile**_ was still there.

It _knew_ something. It knew, it _knew_, it _**knew**_ –

What?

**What** did it know?

The empty, moonlit room around him offered no answers nor did the annoying ringing in his ears.

Byakuran stood motionless for another minute before relenting to the enthralling urge and snatching up his handgun from the side table, shrugging on one of the many uniformed coats he owned.

He'd find out. This would tell him.

Then he'd _**know**_ too.

He threw open the door and marched across the small office that connected directly to his suite. He dug a fingernail into the long meeting table and dragged it down the soft wood as he walked. He revelled in the inhumane shrieks emitted from the piece of furniture and continued on until he stood directly in front of the first subordinate he saw. The man opened his mouth to greet him and Byakuran could already see the partially hidden fear bubbling up into the faceless man's eyes.

He did not bother responding to the tentative '_can I assist you in any way, sir?'_

Instead, he drew the concealed gun from his pocket and aimed the barrel directly between the lug's eyes. Byakuran took sick pleasure in the way the man's pupils dilated in sudden terror and the way his Adams apple bobbed continuously in an attempt to swallow his sudden gasp of anxiety.

_**He**_** didn't smile **when Byakuran pulled the trigger and watched him fall motionless to the ground.

_**He**_** hadn't known anything **that would tear at Byakuran's concentration and infect his boss with sleepless nights.

Byakuran growled softly and kicked the man out of his way.

Maybe he was **wrong**.

Maybe the Vongola hadn't had an ace up his sleeve.

Maybe he had simply been a fool? Believing in his pitifully small amount of strength up until the end?

Violent; inevitable _**end**_.

Maybe he'd been expecting to be saved?

That must've been it. Byakuran shouldn't panic. The Vongola had simply been relying on false hopes. If he'd known what had really been about to happen, then he wouldn't have smiled so contentedly. He wouldn't –

_He smiled_

There was something _wrong, __wrong, __wrong, __wrong, __wrong, __wrong _

Something very **wrong**;

Unequivocally; irreversibly; undeniably; indisputably _**wrong**_

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN **__ In retrospect, this chapter should not have been as fun to write as it was. _


	19. Blackboard

"Tsu-kun?"

Tsuna didn't turn his head from where he gazed at the large board covering the majority of his office wall. In front of him, pictures and mug shots of various men and women were tacked to the black surface. Documents, newspaper clippings, maps, tickets and receipts, letters, addresses, sticky notes and random excerpts from overheard conversations were also stuck to the board; all of them were linked to each other by a multitude of red string. Tsuna was gnawing absently on his thumbnail as he traced a hand along one string, attempting to discover the meaning of one connection to another. The back of his head was tilted up, staring at the highest, uppermost parts of the board and he was inching closer and closer to the step ladder that he had used to reach the places above his standing height.

Kyoko sighed from her position and entered Tsuna's office, softly closing the door behind her. Tsuna didn't seem to notice her appearance and continued gazing around the room, following one piece of string after another. It wasn't until Kyoko took up the end of her own thread and trailed her hand down to meet her husbands that he paused and looked up at her with a frown of concentration wrinkling his brow and a slight glaze to his eyes which informed Kyoko that he was off in his own world again. When Kyoko smiled however, the haze cleared immediately and Tsuna straightened from his slightly hunched posture. His lips curved upwards in response to her presence and he finally managed to reply, "Kyoko-chan! When did you come in?"

"Just then," she replied, turning to the board that had Tsuna so fascinated, "Big Bro wanted me to tell you that he's going to be cutting his holiday short since he accidentally unearthed an underground human trafficking network in Paris and plans to take care of it personally…"

Tsuna frowned at that information, obviously displeased at the idea of one of his guardians going toe to toe with an entire Family in a foreign country, but he could hardly deny that he had begun to miss the man's positive energy around the mansion. Maybe returning home sooner wouldn't be that bad.

"I told him not to interfere and to wait for you to send a team in to handle it, but you know what Big Bro is like when he gets all pumped up," Kyoko raised a fist in the air and did a very bad 'extreeeme' impression which made Tsuna burst out in laughter, his worry instantly forgotten.

"You should be careful, Kyoko-chan," Tsuna warned, "Next thing you know, you'll start eating as much as him and leaving your used socks all over our room. Personally, I don't think the chefs would be able to handle two monstrous appetites…"

Kyoko laughed at the idea and then paused when her eyes settled on the picture of a beautiful woman. Even though the photo looked like it had been taken hastily from the window of an apartment as the woman was exiting a car and was probably displaying nothing more than a suspect or potential threat, Kyoko still felt a hint of jealousy – why was such an attractive woman's picture tacked onto Tsuna's wall?

"Who's this?" Kyoko asked curiously. Tsuna glanced over from where he had let his mind wander down the strings and gave the picture a brief glance before returning to the large depiction of a Family tree.

"That's Celia Mirellia D'Ortona, better known as Lianoise the Sixth."

"She's a boss?" Kyoko asked, raising her eyebrows in surprise.

"Yes, and a rather violent one at that," Tsuna murmured, lost in concentration as he placed the Family tree back on a pile of paper and rose to inspect a meeting record scrawled messily in Gokudera's handwriting, "She took the position by force after staging a Coup d'état with her brother Raniero. After Raniero had settled into the position of Fifth and appointed Celia as his Consigliere, she created a branch office to Lianoise's company in secret. It began expanding rapidly and when she felt it had gained enough momentum, Celia tricked her brother into double crossing Resuttana the Eighteenth which lead to Lianoise Corp.'s eventual collapse. When Raniero came crawling on his knees back to Celia, she bought out her brothers company, liquidated his assets and seized control of the Family. Now, Raniero is little more than a second rate hitman whose pretty lucky to have survived after coming so close to destroying his entire Family," Tsuna paused for a moment then glanced up with a slight smile, "All things considered, his parents probably could have chosen a better name for him…"

"What do you mean?" She asked curiously, her mind still processing all the information she had been supplied. The amount of knowledge and seemingly trivial facts that Tsuna had managed to store in his memory never ceased to amaze her.

"The Italian meaning of Raniero is literally 'wise warrior'…" Tsuna explained with a smirk, "Definitely not what I would label him nowadays. Even a new recruit could have seen through Ciela's plan."

Kyoko simply shook her head in shock at his words. She knew that most Mafia women were near-heartless when it came to seizing power but to murder her boss and trick her own brother into poverty…

"Who's her partner?" She asked, noticing the almost imperceptible bulge in Celia's stomach.

"Hmm? Partner? Her Consigliere is a man ca-"

"No," Kyoko interrupted, "I mean her lover. Are they married?"

Tsuna stilled his hands and glanced up at Kyoko with confusion all over his face, "Lover?" he asked, "Celia is a confirmed bachelorette with a string of lovers left all over Europe. Mind you that trail's begun to dwindle somewhat. The last time she left a man alone in a hotel room was almost three and a half months ago."

"Three and a half?" Kyoko repeated disbelievingly, turning her eyes back to the picture. Sure enough, there was a slight bump in her stomach that Kyoko would recognize anywhere. When she had first seen Bianchi sporting the proud stomach of an expecting mother, Kyoko's mind had subconsciously etched the memory into her brain, "Are you sure? She doesn't look like she's more than a few weeks along…"

That really got Tsuna's attention. He stood abruptly and almost tumbled backwards over an inconveniently placed cardboard box. He steadied himself by grabbing hold of the wall and pulling himself over to where Kyoko was watching with wide eyes.

"Few weeks along in what?" He asked frantically, already half-expecting the answer.

"Her pregnancy…?" Kyoko explained, beginning to fear for her husband's sanity. Surely he had noticed that Celia was pregnant? It had only taken her two glances to suspect and then confirm it.

"She's…she…" Tsuna mumbled, staring over Kyoko's shoulder at the photo, eyes narrowed at the woman's stomach, "Pregnant…but she…"

Kyoko watched him, suddenly feeling a slight sense of unease steal over her. Why was Tsuna reacting so…strangely? Surely it wasn't that intriguing? She couldn't help but feel a hint of suspicion. He seemed to know everything about her; the rise to power, her personality, her family and Family life, her…sexual partners. Kyoko paled suddenly when a kind of realization hit her. She opened her mouth to ask Tsuna the damning question when she was suddenly cut off by a sudden whoop.

"Of COURSE!" Tsuna yelped, turning on his heel and bolting to the other side of the wall. He did a small jump in order to reach the ball of red string hanging from a nail in the wall and then as quickly as he had gone, bolted back to her side. He practically skidded to a stop in front of Celia's picture and looped one end of the string around the thumb tack holding it in place. Kyoko watching with wide, confused eyes and he dashed back into the middle of the wall, grabbing the step ladder as he went. Tsuna climbed the steps, never once taking his eyes off of his target and then looped the string around another thumb tack. He continued to mutter inaudibly under his breath as he jumped fearlessly off the third step and darted back to the far left hand side of the wall.

Kyoko watched as Tsuna continued his fervent exertions until finally, he came to an abrupt halt back where he had began, when Kyoko had first walked in.

"Oh god, it makes so much more sense now! If Celia was seeing – but she couldn't have – so Pietro helped out with the – then when she's found out they'll – Kyoko, you are the most beautiful, intelligent woman I've ever met!" He exclaimed suddenly, turning around with his eyes shining with unexpected excitement.

At his words and actions, Kyoko couldn't help the smile that slid onto her face. Sometime during his frantic running, she had realized that no, her husband had not been having an affair with a fellow Mafia Boss and was terrified that he had accidentally impregnated her – instead, she was certain that he had just managed to solve a rather large puzzle that had been pulling at his concentration for a few weeks now.

Tsuna took two long strides over to where Kyoko stood and pulled her into an enthusiastic hug. She squeaked when he lifted her feet off the ground and twirled her around in a small circle, laughing in delight all the while. When he set her feet back down on the ground, Kyoko took the chance to pull his head down and steal a breathy kiss. Tsuna smiled into it and he closed his eyes briefly, allowing her to entangle her fingers into the hair at the base of his neck. He gently tightened his arms around her waist and couldn't help but break off to grin at her widely again.

At the sudden lapse, Kyoko took the chance to ask curiously, "What did you figure out?"

Tsuna grinned as his arms fell away from her and he pulled her by the hand over to the beginning of the red thread. It was connected to a piece of paper with barely legible Italian handwriting on it, but Tsuna explained instead of Kyoko trying and failing to make out the unfamiliar language.

"This is a message to Don Tripannie from Vincenzio Vippia, a freelance hitman who until recently was considered retired. Normally he'd have no reason to contact someone like Don Tripannie, but I managed to connect him to a recent string of unidentified murders since he forgot the most important thing – all hitmen have a style than can be recognized. Usually. At first there didn't seem to be any pattern but if we follow the strings from all the victims, we notice that they're all related by one obscure link – Pietro Armarov. He's the acting CEO of Liangeoise Inc. which is the branch of Lianoise Corp. that Celia started. All of the victims had contact with him in the last six months and either work for him or have made some kind of transaction with him. Don Tripannie was originally a supporter of Lianoise Corp., so when things turned sour with Raniero and Celia, he pulled back his hand and turned on Celia.

Usually,we wouldn't get involved with this kind of thing, but it wasn't until Anturi of Vongola and Kustoff of the Russian Mafia got in contact that we started looking into it. We tapped Anturi's phone lines to find out who this Kustoff guy was since we don't have any contacts in the Russian Mafia – no reliable ones anyway – and we hit a complete dead end," Tsuna explained, pulling Kyoko along the red thread to yet another mug shot of a burly, angry looking Russian with a large burn of his cheek. She had listened with something akin to fascination. The politics of the underworld somehow always managed to thrill her.

"Well, we nearly hit a dead end," Tsuna continued, "but when Gokudera was in Sicily, he picked up a rouge transmission meant for a guy named Michele. It was in Russian and that was pretty much the only reason he kept record. It mentioned something about the Tripannie Family and that was enough to spark out interest. When we looked into it, we found out that Kustoff was a high-ranking hitmen in one of Russia's right-wing Families that had been backing Don Tripannie financially for about a year and a half. With the help of Kustoff's Family, Tripannie the twelfth had been planning to build up a second, legit business with Anturi set to be the acting head. Only two days before their big unveiling plan, Celia resigned and pulled all of the hitmen loyal to her out of the Family and disappeared completely."

Kyoko nodded along, not willing to admit that she had lost track of everything Tsuna had just said and had let her mind start wandering back when he starting throwing around names so easily.

"Okay…but how does Celia's pregnancy fit into this?" She asked eventually.

"Oh! Well, we knew how the Trippanie Family was planning their rise, but we didn't know the motive. Since Celia is pregnant, that changes everything. See, the only person that she could have, um, been in a relationship with without us finding out about it would be her right hand – Michele. It turns out that he was in Sicily on an assignment when Gokudera was there, and that's the only reason we knew of his involvement. Kustoff's message must have been a threat to Michele, telling him that the Russians knew about him and Celia. It also explains why Vippia was targeting those who had contacted Pietro – Don Trippanie was trying to scare off any prospective business partners and send a warning to Celia, the real head of the company, that Trippanie wouldn't let anymore large deals be made with Liangeois Inc. It was his way of threatening their entire Family without any of the actual hitmen knowing about it; kind of an underhanded way to go about it, but effective nonetheless. Celia must have caught on and left the second she had the chance. Michele was found decapitated two days ago which only confirms my suspicions that Celia doesn't want anyone else knowing about her pregnancy until she's already aborted it."

Kyoko looked at Tsuna with wide eyes as he gazed around the board with a dark expression.

"Why did you figure all of this out?" Kyoko asked curiously, "Is it going to affect Vongola?"

Tsuna considered for a moment before nodded slightly, "Yes, I believe it will. I can't overlook Arturo's intended betrayal, even if it didn't go through. Also, Celia contacted me the other day requested a meeting under friendly conditions."

Kyoko's eyes shot wide at this small tidbit of information that Tsuna forgot to mention earlier, "Friendly conditions?" She repeated, not liking the obviously bitter note in her voice. Tsuna seemed to catch on that she wasn't happy about his small moment of omission.

"Don't worry, Kyoko-chan," He assured her as he pulled her into a hug, "My reply didn't please her very much. I may have let slip that I have a loving wife who I appreciate more than the idea of a flimsy alliance with a dying Family."

Kyoko made a contented noise against his shoulder and giggled when she felt his breath mess up her combed fringe. She pulled back with her nose wrinkling in sudden puzzlement again.

"Wait a minute, Tsu-kun," she started, "If you're not going to see this woman, why did you go to so much trouble to find the whole story?"

Tsuna smiled and pecked a kiss on Kyok's nose before replying, "This way, when I see Don Trappie next week, I'll have enough material to blackmail him into signing over the entire multi-million…even billion Dollar Company, and its income, to Vongola."

Kyoko stared at Tsuna in shock for a moment, understanding dawning on her slowly as Tsuna broke out in to an even wider grin.

"Say, Kyoko-chan…where do you want our new holiday resort to be based?"

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN **Again, my love for the idea of Tsuna actually knowing what he's doing surfaces. This was also inspired from Jasper's prompt 'Strings' so for any nit-pickers who argue that technically it's not a blackboard but a cork board that uses thumb tacks, ignore the chapter title and pretend it says String instead. Mafia Politics is possibly one of the most interesting things to write. It's like normal politics, but on steroids and everyone has guns. _


	20. Muse

She was his muse.

When he put pen to paper and scratched notes atop a five lined staff, it was her body that danced inside his head to a mournful waltz. When he placed his hands gently on the black and white keys, it was her fingers he could feel, resting reassuringly along the curve of his shoulders. When he closed his eyes and let the music swirl out from the raised, glossy top of a grand piano, it was her smile that he pictured.

And when he finally let his tense hands release the ending note, it was her pair of lips that swooped down to thank him in the most encouraging way that he could imagine.

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN ** Just to tease you guys :P_


	21. Magic

Tsuna had never been able to figure out how Reborn managed to show up at the most inconvenient times. It was as though, somewhere in the world, there was a large, red light that buzzed and whirled every time he was in a situation that would effectively mortify him if someone else were to see.

An example of this might be the way he had managed to accidentally blindfold one of his eyes with his shirt and tangle his trousers around his ankles. It wasn't until after he had tripped, landed awkwardly on the side of his bed and found it impossible to wriggle back to his feet that Reborn had popped into view, just inside his peripheral sight, with a sly comment about the possibility of training clumsiness out of test subjects. Of course, once Tsuna had made his opinion of the infant quite clear, Reborn had sat down with a Leon-tea cup – still empty to show his oh-so-suave attitude and indifference towards his pitiful student's state. It had taken Tsuna a full six minutes of intense cursing, slight yelling and violent thrashing to finally struggle into a sitting position from which he could glare angrily at the hitman. Of course the expression's impact was diminished slightly by the way Reborn simply smiled in response and continued bouncing the Leon-paddle ball against the board; not affected in the slightest.

Another time that made Tsuna flush in a mixture of anger and embarrassment was the time that Reborn had decided to begin a lecture about keeping his guard up mid-way through his morning…routine. He had jumped a foot in the air and made the mistake of starting to turn around when he realized what the results would end up being. Even though he managed to save himself an even larger mess, the damage had been done and Tsuna had been blushing a fiery red as he ran a sanitized washcloth over the floor around the toilet. Reborn even had the nerve to stand over…well next to him as he went, talking about how this was a perfect example of how the combination of clumsiness, lack of vigilance and simple-mindedness was going to be the death of Tsuna one day. Of course, the brunette had bit his tongue to stop himself from pointing out that he doubted even the most ruthless of enemies would attack him mid-way through a piss.

All in all, Reborn's methods were becoming slowly more and more merciless as the years went on. After many a discussion with Yamamoto about the kid, the star baseball player insisted that Reborn was just a little enthusiastic about doing his job. Even after Tsuna had described the…toilet incident (and when Yamamoto had finally stopped rolling on the ground, clutching his stomach with laughter) the swordsman simply shrugged and mentioned that the baby might've actually had a point. It wasn't until later that day that Tsuna realized Yamamoto had been serious.

Of course, the results garnered from Gokudera and his conversation had been slightly less mortifying yet involved quite a bit more yelling and desperate no-more-dynamite-for-the-love-of-god-please's. When the explosives expert had found out that Tsuna had been left flailing about for a quarter of an hour, half naked and embarrassed, he'd gotten that dark gleam in his eye that threatened the life of anyone who even looked at Tsuna for quite a while afterwards. Of course it was then that Tsuna finally asked what had been bugging him.

"How do you think he does it?"

Gokudera looked at him thoughtfully for a long moment before his head shot up in satisfaction and he sighed in an 'ohh, I get it now' kind of way.

"What is it?" Tsuna asked, "Do you have an idea?"

Gokudera nodded enthusiastically before leaning in closely to Tsuna and beckoning him forward so that they could whisper and still hear each other.

"I fear that if Reborn overhears this and I'm right, I may not live until morning. Tenth, please, take everything that I'm about to say on hundred percent seriously or you may be at risk as well."

"Okay," Tsuna agreed hesitantly, unsure of whether his right hand actually had a feasible idea or he was just caught up in another one of those elaborate suspicions about U.M.A's and the like.

"I think…" Gokudera took a deep steadying breath before continuing fearfully, "I believe that Reborn-san may dabble in black magic."

There was a very, very long silence as Tsuna attempted to work out what the hell Gokudera was on about and the silverette stared at him with all seriousness, until finally, Tsuna asked the one thing he could think of.

"Wait, what?"


	22. Clean

Sometimes, when Tsuna pauses in his work, he'll glance absently at his hands. His eyes never linger. Only for a second, he'll stop and compare them to their appearance many years ago. He'll gaze at the fresh manicure that Reborn insisted on and then find it incredibly odd to see such well-maintained nails next to such scarred and calloused knuckles. He takes a second to wonder what they'd look like had they not been blackened by the guilt and anger that he deals with so frequently.

He never stares too long.

Oddly enough, it has nothing to do with the knowledge that the more time he wastes, the more his work builds up. It has everything to do with the way his memory recalls them coated in red.


End file.
